Chinese Foreign Ministry defends oil rig against Viet claims

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Friday that the country's operations in the South China Sea are normal business exploration in waters under the undisputed jurisdiction of China, after Vietnam urged on Thursday the country to move an oil rig in waters it claims.

U.S., South Korea take steps to deploy THAAD on peninsula

Defense officials of the United States and South Korea are to launch a joint working group Friday to discuss the deployment of a U.S. anti-missile defense system on the peninsula.

Freedom-of-navigation operation: Beijing Protests US Sail-By in South China Sea

A U.S. Navy warship sailed through South China Sea waters claimed by China Saturday in a "freedom of navigation" exercise, which China denounced as "grave misconduct."

China backs UN resolution, stresses need to restart N.Korea dialogue

China agrees that the UN Security Council should take further action and pass a new resolution on North Korea, following its nuclear test earlier this month, but the new resolution should not stir up tensions or cause chaos in the peninsula, Chinese foreign minister said.

China urges Japan not to distort facts about Diaoyu Islands

China's defense ministry on Friday urged Japan not to distort the facts about the Diaoyu Islands issue.

Assad forces in Aleppo offensive

Syrian government forces backed by Russian airpower and allied militias opened a new front against rebel fighters south of second city Aleppo on Friday.

Death toll in China’s Tianjin blasts climbs to 104

The death toll from massive explosions in the Chinese port of Tianjin has risen to 104, the country’s official Xinhua news agency said on Saturday citing local authorities.

Philippines expects to win UN South China Sea case

The Philippines expects a United Nations tribunal to rule in its favor in an increasingly fraught dispute with China over territories in the South China Sea, a presidential spokeswoman said Saturday.

China, Taiwan leaders hold highest level talks in 6 yrs

 China's President Xi Jinping and Taiwan's ruling party chairman Eric Chu met Monday, with the intention of boosting economic ties.

Fidel Castro awarded China's Confucius Peace Prize

Cuban leader Fidel Castro has been awarded with the Confucius Peace prize, China’s own version of the Nobel Peace Prize which organizers of the alternative distinction consider biased against the Asian giant.

The ceremony was held at the Beijing University with Cuban students representing Castro, receiving a statuette, a diploma and money on behalf of the historic leader of Cuba’s revolution.

China rejects Britain's "moral duty" to Hong Kong

BEIJING, Dec. 3 (Xinhua) -- China on Wednesday rejected Britain's "moral duty" to Hong Kong, adding some British lawmakers' attempts to meddle in China's internal affairs is "not acceptable" and "doomed to fail."

China slams British MPs’ attempt to visit Hong Kong

China on Monday explained its refusal to allow British lawmakers to visit Hong Kong and urged them not to interfere in Hong Kong's affairs.

UN condemns N.Korea ‘rights abuses’ (Resolution is symbolic, faces possible veto in Security Council)

The United Nations on Tuesday adopted a resolution condemning North Korean rights abuses and called for the Security Council to consider referring North Korea to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged crimes against humanity.

US President Raises Tibetan Rights Issue with Xi Jinping

DHARAMSHALA: President Barack Obama raised the Tibet issue during a joint press conference in Beijing on Wednesday with Chinese president Xi Jinping, the Daily Mail reported.
‘We are not in favor of independence,’ President Obama said at the press conference.

‘But we did encourage Chinese authorities to take steps to preserve the unique cultural, religious and linguistic identity of the Tibetan people,’ he said.

China, Japan take steps to bury hatchet after 3 years of dispute

China and Japan have reached an agreement on maintaining peace in the disputed chain of islands in the East China Sea after three years of war mongering. The agreement was reached in Beijing between China's State Councilor Yang Jiechi and the visiting National Security Advisor of Japan, Shotaro Yachi.

The new move may also pave the way for the first ever meeting between Chinese president Xi Jinping and Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe on the sidelines of the Asia Pacific Cooperation summit next week.

Obama takes midterm hit (Result will not impact continuity in Sino-US ties)

The Republicans achieved sweeping midterm election wins on Tuesday, seizing control of the US Senate in a blow to President Barack Obama that will limit his political influence and curb his legislative agenda in his last two years in office, said analysts.

Republicans won in places where Democrats were favored, like a Senate race in North Carolina, pulled out victories where the going was tough, like a Senate battle in Kansas, and swept a number of governors' races in states where Democrats were favored, like Obama's home state of Illinois.

82 Million Chinese Live on $1 per Day

Over 82 million of China’s residents are surviving on a daily income of $1 despite China's meteoric economic growth and rising export volumes, the Strait Time reports.

“The poverty-stricken population not only suffer from low income but also face various difficulties in getting drinking water, roads, electricity, education, medical care and loans,” said aChinese official Zheng Wenkai, cited by South China Morning Post.

According to the news source, poverty remains a ever present burden for most of the Chinese population. China's rural residents average 2,300 yuan ($368) a year or about $1 a day.

China, Japan restart maritime talks. (Chinese FM)

China and Japan have restarted high-level consultations on maritime affairs, according to a press release issued by the Chinese foreign ministry on Wednesday.

A meeting was held on Tuesday and Wednesday in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, with Yi Xianliang, deputy director-general of the Department of Boundary and Ocean Affairs of the Chinese Foreign Ministry and Makita Shimokawa, deputy director-general of the Japanese Foreign Ministry's Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau, as the chief representatives from both sides.

China accuses Britain of interference over Hong Kong

BEIJING: China on Wednesday accused London of interfering in its internal affairs after British Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg met two leading Hong Kong pro-democracy activists urging greater freedoms from Beijing.
China "lodged solemn protests" with Britain over Tuesday's meetings with Martin Lee, founder of Hong Kong's opposition Democratic Party, and Anson Chan, the former number two in the city's government, the official Xinhua news agency reported.
"What Britain has done is interference in China's internal affairs. China strongly opposes it," said Beijing's foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei.
"Hong Kong's affairs fall within China's internal affairs. China firmly opposes any interference in Hong Kong affairs by any country under whatever pretext," said Hong.

China slashes Chris Patten's comments on Hong Kong political reform

China has reiterated its firm objection to outside forces' interference into the internal affairs of Hong Kong, according to the Office of the Commissioner of China's Foreign Ministry of China in Hong Kong.

Asked to comment on former Hong Kong governor Chris Patten's recent remarks on the political reform in Hong Kong, a spokesperson of the commissioner's office said over the weekend that Hong Kong has entered the critical stage of its political reform, it is worth noting that some people are making unfounded comments on Hong Kong's political reform for other purposes in disregard of the facts.